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Five Honored with Clarkson University's Most Prestigious Alumni Award

Eric P. Dibble of Endwell, N.Y., senior manager of printed circuit operations at Lockheed Martin; William J. Hurd of Mesquite, Nev., and Steamboat Springs, Colo., system architect for deep space communications systems; Earl R. “Skip” Lewis of Boston, Mass., CEO and president of FLIR Systems Inc.; Kevin T. Parker of Clifton, Va., president and CEO of Deltek Inc.; and U.S. Rep. Paul D. Tonko of Amsterdam, N.Y. have all been honored with the Golden Knight Award by their alma mater, Clarkson University.

Presented each year during Reunion Weekend, Clarkson's most prestigious alumni award is given to alumni who have distinguished themselves either by service to Clarkson through Alumni Association activities or have demonstrated outstanding career achievement, bringing distinction to themselves and to Clarkson.

Eric P. Dibble

Dibble received his bachelor of science degree in chemical engineering from Clarkson University in 1981.

While a student at Clarkson, he was a resident advisor and resident director. Dibble continued his education at Lehigh University, where he received his master of science in manufacturing systems engineering in 1987.

Dibble began his career in 1981 as a process engineer with IBM Corporation, working his way up to senior engineer/manager. He then went on to start up International Flex Technologies Division of Sheldahl Inc. as director of Product and Process Engineering, where he established flex circuit product lines and relationships with multiple domestic and international customers.

In 1999, Dibble accepted a position with Lockheed Martin Systems and Sensors in Owego, N.Y. As project manager and business development leader for optical character recognition software and hardware technology products and programs, Dibble developed business opportunities to serve the automation needs of the United States Postal Service, France and Sweden’s postal agencies, and multiple U.S. government agencies.

Dibble's enthusiasm for Clarkson has never wavered. He has been involved with the Alumni Association as president, member-at-large, a regional phon-a-thon volunteer, class reunion activities chair, board of governors, member and reunion giving chair.

As a result of his commitment and leadership as a young alumnus, Dibble was awarded the Woodstock Award in 1996. During his terms as Alumni Association vice president and president from 2006-2010, the Alumni Council implemented multiple initiatives, including 100 percent Alumni Council participation in the Clarkson Fund; re-establishment and growth of a homecoming tradition; and the inception, creation and implementation of the alumni gateway, the first Alumni Council fundraising endeavor. Dibble was awarded the Charles S. Ehrlich ’56 Admission Award in 2010 for Alumni Council restructuring focusing on recruitment of promising future Clarkson alumni.

Dibble resides in Endwell, N.Y., and has two daughters, Jessica and Melissa.

William J. Hurd

Hurd grew up in Uniondale, N.Y., and graduated from Hempstead High School. He lived from 1968-2008 in La Canada Flintridge, Calif.

Hurd received his bachelor of science degree in electrical engineering from Clarkson in 1961.

During his undergraduate studies at Clarkson, Hurd was a member of the Omicron Pi Omicron fraternity, and the Eta Kappa Nu and Tau Beta Pi honor societies.

After graduation, Hurd was awarded fellowships by the Hughes Aircraft Company, which enabled him to earn a master of science and Ph.D. degree in electrical engineering at the University of Southern California.

Hurd worked at the NASA Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Pasadena, Calif., before retiring after a distinguished 40-year career. He conducted research in several areas of deep space communications and in position locations systems, including the Global Positioning System. He was supervisor of the Digital Systems Research Group, deputy manager of the Communications Ground Systems Section and a principal system architect in the Interplanetary Network Directorate. Hurd received the NASA Exceptional Service Medal for technical and managerial leadership in development of the digital receiver-demodulator system, which has been used in the Deep Space Network for the past 20 years.

He holds six patents and is the author of 15 journals and 25 conference papers.

Along with his wife, Elaine, Hurd is active with several charitable and political organizations. Both have completed extensive educational programs in fundraising and Hurd is using this knowledge to serve as planned giving chair for his 50th reunion class. He is also a member of the Annie Clarkson Society.

The Hurds live in Mesquite, Nev., and Steamboat Springs, Colo., where they enjoy travelling, downhill skiing, golfing and other outdoor activities. William Hurd has two sons, Jeff and David, and two grandchildren.

Earl R. “Skip” Lewis

Lewis received his bachelor of science degree in industrial distribution from Clarkson in 1966.

Beginning as a planning engineer at Westinghouse Electric Corporation after graduation, Lewis quickly moved up the ranks throughout his career, holding a number of leadership positions at companies such as Alfa-Laval and Thermo Instrument Systems Inc.

He is currently the CEO and president of FLIR Systems Inc., the world leader in thermal imaging. Under his leadership, FLIR has been rated by Forbes six times in the last nine years -- four times in the top 200 best small companies and twice in the top 100 best mid-cap companies.

FLIR was also named the Best Company in the Northwest three times by the Seattle Journal; rated #7 by the Wall Street Journal for five years performance ranking and #1 for electronic equipment manufacturers; and named as one of the 100 fastest growing companies by Fortune. In 2010, Lewis was named business man of the year by Battlespace magazine.

Lewis has also continued to further his education and has attended post-graduate programs at the Harvard University, Northeastern University and University of Buffalo.

He currently holds board positions for four public companies, FLIR Systems, Inc., Harvard BioScience, NxStage Medical Inc., and American DG Energy, and two private companies.

Lewis is also a member of Clarkson University’s board of trustees and serves on the institutional advancement, research and investment committees. He has been a generous supporter of Clarkson and continues to demonstrate his devotion to his alma mater.

Lewis and his wife, Barbara, live in Boston, Mass., and have two sons, Chip and Gregory.

Kevin T. Parker

Parker received his bachelor of science degree in accounting from Clarkson University in 1981. He is the president and CEO of Deltek Inc., a leading provider of enterprise resource planning (ERP) solutions for project-based businesses and professional services firms.

Prior to joining Deltek, Parker was co-president and CFO of PeopleSoft until the company’s acquisition by Oracle. During his tenure, he led the efforts to dramatically increase PeopleSoft’s operating margin and was involved in all facets of the business. He was also the architect and driving force behind PeopleSoft’s innovative customer assurance plan (CAP).

Before PeopleSoft, he held senior executive positions with Aspects Communications, a leading provider of contact center solutions and services that enable businesses to manage and optimize customer communications, and Fijitsu Computer Products of America, a leading provider of data storage and imaging solutions for the global marketplace.

In 2000, CFO magazine named Parker one of the 20 chief financial officers who will have a major impact in the next decade. He is also a Henry Crown Fellow of the Aspen Institute.

Parker was elected to the Clarkson University Board of Trustees in May 2004 and currently serves on the executive, audit, compensation, research and trusteeship committees and co-chairs the E2E Campaign of the institutional advancement committee. He also endowed the Kenneth R. and Margaret Parker Scholarship in honor of his parents.

Parker and his wife, Anne, live in Clifton, Va., with their daughter, Katherine.

U.S. Rep. Paul D. Tonko

Tonko began his service to the citizens of New York shortly after he graduated from Clarkson University with a degree in mechanical and industrial engineering in 1971. He is the first Clarkson graduate to be elected to the New York State legislature and the first to be elected to Congress.

Tonko is serving his second term in Congress representing the 21st District of New York. He brings to Washington, D.C., over two decades of administrative, legislative and policy experience having served in the New York State Assembly from 1983 to 2007. As president and CEO of the New York State Energy Research and Development Authority (NYSERDA) from 2007-2008, Tonko worked to advance an aggressive green agenda for businesses and residents throughout New York state.

Tonko is a nationally recognized expert on energy issues. An engineer by training, he served as chairman of the New York State Assembly Standing Committee on Energy prior to leaving the Assembly to join NYSERDA. As chairman, Tonko fought to protect consumers, fought against utility deregulation and worked to upgrade our aging energy infrastructure.

In Congress, he is a member of the budget committee, where he works to promote investments that create jobs and grow the economy, protect investments in the middle class and help bring down the deficit. Tonko is also a member of the committee on science, space and technology, which merges his energy expertise with his environmental agenda. Serving on subcommittees for energy and environment as well as research and science education, he hopes to create an environment where innovation and cutting-edge research and design promote economic development in the 21st Congressional District.

An advocate for a “green economy” and “green-collar jobs,” Congressman Tonko has promoted wind development in Upstate New York and successfully lobbied GE to locate its growing GE Wind operations in Schenectady, N.Y. In the New York State Assembly, he was a lead sponsor of the Power for Jobs program, which provides low-cost power to employers throughout New York state and has retained or created 300,000 jobs statewide.

Tonko also has strong ties to local government. At age 26, he was the youngest person in the history in Montgomery County to be elected to the county’s Board of Supervisors, serving as chairman until 1981. Prior to his election to the Assembly in 1983, Tonko was an engineer in the New York State Department of Transportation and also served on the staff of the Department of Public Service. He has been a longtime member of the Public Employees Federation (PEF) and proudly serves as the first PEF member elected to Congress.

Tonko is a lifelong resident of Amsterdam, N.Y.

Clarkson University launches leaders into the global economy. One in five alumni already leads as a CEO, VP or equivalent senior executive of a company. Located just outside the Adirondack Park in Potsdam, N.Y., Clarkson is a nationally recognized research university for undergraduates with select graduate programs in signature areas of academic excellence directed toward the world’s pressing issues. Through 50 rigorous programs of study in engineering, business, arts, sciences and health sciences, the entire learning-living community spans boundaries across disciplines, nations and cultures to build powers of observation, challenge the status quo, and connect discovery and engineering innovation with enterprise.

Photo caption: Five Clarkson University alumni have received the Golden Knight Award from their alma mater. Award winners (left to right) William J. Hurd, Earl R. “Skip” Lewis, U.S. Rep. Paul D. Tonko and Eric P. Dibble with Clarkson University President Tony Collins. Not present: award winner Kevin T. Parker.